Reactions to some books

Note:  These personal reactions were posted at another blog before. 

THE SIRENS OF TITAN – KURT VONNEGUT

After flying into a chrono-synclastic infundibulum, millionaire astronaut Winston Niles Rumfoord becomes pure energy and exists only as a wave phenomenon, pulsing in a distorted spiral through time, only getting home to Newport, Rhode Island for an hour once every fifty-nine days. But at least he has his dog with him. And he gets to learn everything that has ever happened. And everything that ever will. Which, of course, leads inevitably to the establishment of the Church of God the Utterly Indifferent...

I really don't want to classify this book under Science Fiction, though undoubtedly it has elements of SF in it. But far beyond SF, it is probably one of the most psychological and philosophical, even theological, books I've ever read. It does indeed take you from Earth to Mars, to Mercury, to the moons of Saturn, to Betelguese, and beyond - but never, not once, did it stray from us, the human Earthling. This book is about humanity at its worst and at its most enlightened. It questions who we really are and what the hell are we really doing with our lives and where the hell does God really enter the picture (Hell, is there really a God in the picture?). It asks, and answers, the questions that really matter.

I loved this book through and through. Vonnegut is a genius. No one else could give a read like this where you get space ships and aliens along with religious zealotry and will actually make you doubt which of the two is more believable, more plausible. He does it with pinpoint accuracy and wit, too. It's like crossing Douglas Adams with Thomas Acquinas. What other author could possibly compare?
Well, maybe Terry Pratchett...

THE PENELOPIAD – MARGARET ATWOOD

Elegantly written, wonderful through and through. I finished the whole book in one sitting (lying down, actually, a bad habit). I happen to be one of those nutty people who lovelovelove mythologies. I honestly cried many times while reading the Iliad for the first time, and I still cry when I re-read it. This book really made me look at The Odyssey in a whole new light. I've always admired Penelope, but nothing like the way I see her now. This book is amazing. A definite must-read for all women (alright, men, too), whether a fan of Homeric literature or not.

PORTRAIT OF A MARRIAGE – PEARL S. BUCK

One of the most beautiful love stories I've read in a loooooong while.
A moving story of the great sacrifices that people can make for the ones they love. From the acclaimed author of "The Good Earth."
A worthwhile read. Highly recommended.

Synopsis: William and Ruth came from two different worlds. He was a sensitive, proud artist, son of a rich and often selfish family. She was the unlettered daughter of an earthy Pennsylvania farmer. Yet, from the moment William saw Ruth, he knew he must have her. And with a stubborn intensity that shattered his family's objection, William went after this soft-spoken but provocative woman who knew nothing of art and elegance, but who was all-wise in the ways of love...

HIGH LONESOME – SHORT STORIES BY JOYCE CAROL OATES

A collection of short stories by the author.
I love her writing. Sublime, elegant, and gracefully restrained. Her stories are alternately sad, disturbing, and mysterious. The endings are often puzzling but satisfying nonetheless. The stories leave you wanting to know more, wishing the author wrote more, showed you more, but she didn't. It's like she's deliberately leaving you to make your own impressions and conclusions. So amazing.

Favorites:
Fat Man, My Love
High Lonesome
Life After High School
Will You Always Love Me?
The Tryst
The Dead
The Swimmers

ON THE ROAD – JACK KEROUAC

“During three weeks in 1951, Jack Kerouac wrote the first draft of On the Road - typed as a long, single-spaced paragraph of eight sheets of tracing paper, which he taped together to form a scroll."

On the Road is one of the most influential works of the beat generation, and upon reading it, one can certainly feel the irresistible yearning for that unidentifiable something new, something else in the world beyond what everyone already had resigned themselves to. You just want to drop everything and step out the door and see where your feet (and perhaps a car) will take you.

Reading "The Original Scroll" was like downing a giant coke slushie in one go. The brain freeze and the sugar shock shoots straight through your body and you feel woozy and drunk and dizzy and you wanna dance till your socks fall off - a literary high. I felt like I was there in that car with Jack and Neal, barreling down those roads where only the unknown destination matters.

I didn't bother to read all the forewords and introductions. I couldn't care less what critics and experts say. I loved this book. For me this book is freedom and adventure and daring. I recommend it to anyone who feels boxed in by convention and worry about what others might say. I recommend it to anyone who has glimpsed outside the windows and doors of their lives and has wondered what's out there. I recommend it to anyone who wants to dare themselves to live free.

THE DISPOSSESSED – URSULA K. LE GUIN

For a sci-fi novel, this one is a true classic.
It's almost like reading Orwell's 1984, or Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath.

It's the story of Shevek, a brilliant physicist from an anarchic world.
His ideas rejected, he seeks intellectual refuge by travelling to the mother
world, only to discover that in that world, sharing his ideas would have
consequences he never could have thought of.

The novel is terse and intensely thought-provoking. I loved every moment of it.
It is a book for anyone who enjoys stories that make them look at their
world and rethink the way they live.

Memorable: "True journey is return." & "His hands were empty, as they have always been."

THE GRAPES OF WRATH – JOHN STEINBECK

EVERY GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL OR ANYONE ELSE RUNNING FOR OFFICE, SHOULD READ THIS BOOK.

THE DARK TOWER SERIES – STEPHEN KING

I have followed this series since its inception. I don't really know, nor do I care how many years that has been. And now that I've come to its end, the beginning matters even less. Life is a cycle, and fate is a wheel.

Suffice it to say that for all those years, Roland Deschain has been walking at the edge of my world; not quite within my touch, but there in my world all the same. He, like all my best beloved tragic heroes, have served to hold the edges of my world intact. Because of the lessons I have learned from him, I have not quite frayed so badly yet. I have been held together by the knowing hands of the last gunslinger, and I am most grateful.

I held off reading the last of the series (I've had the whole series in my possession for years, but only recently decided to finish it) for many reasons, but primarily because I was afraid of the ending. It had been a world I'd sort of gotten used to, and perhaps I didn't want to leave it anymore. I had imagined myself in it, breathing its air, speaking an-tet with Roland, Eddie, Susannah, and Jake. I've fancied myself stroking Oy's fur. Laughing and suffering along with them. But leaving a place that had felt like a home to you is sometimes necessary, however painful.

I've always believed that endings are nothing to be afraid of. Life is a cycle, and fate is a wheel. I and Roland's ka-tet will meet again; perhaps when I have found my own rose, the keys to all my unfound doors, and when I've reached the top of my own dark tower and faced the ending that awaits me there. And from there, everything can begin again.

THE BOOK THIEF – MARCUS ZUSAK

Is there anything in the world that is REALLY worth stealing? My answer: Books. This is one of the most wonderful, luminous stories I've read in a while.

My brother and I found this book together. That in itself makes it so special. At that time, neither of us had the money to buy a copy of the book. Did we contemplate becoming book-thieves ourselves? It's certainly worth much more than money. We had to wait awhile before we could read it, and we don't regret the long wait. I can't ever praise this book too much.

The Book Thief is the story of a young girl who sought salvation and redemption in books in the thick of Nazi Germany, told by an unexpected narrator in a voice I will not forget 'til I meet him myself.

I joyfully recommend this book to anyone who loves to read, and loves to live. Unforgettable.

JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR. NORRELL – SUSANNA CLARKE

One of the longest novels I've read recently. But that doesn't mean it's not interesting. On the contrary, no matter how long it took me, I knew I would not be able to rest until I'd finished the book.

The story is about the revival of English Magic by two magicians, a teacher and a student. Their exploits range from the very trivial, almost unnoticeable magic tricks, to changing the course of history, to bridging the gap between different dimensions and planes of existence. It is a magical, historical, literary thrill ride. Even the innumerable footnotes are gripping.

I love the language of the book. The author captured the historical atmosphere of that age, it's dim-duskiness, and its foggy mysteries. I found the use of old spellings delightful. The language transported me to that time and place, where anything and everything seemed possible, and magic was as real as change. I ended up wanting to believe that there truly was magic in the world. The eerily haunting pictures helped create the mood, as well.

I love the characters. They are all believable. Not one of them was perfect and polished. They are all wonderfully quirky and annoying and frustrating and fascinating all at the same time. Even the antagonist was endearing in some ways. My favorites are Jonathan Strange and Stephen Black.

I adore how everything fell into place in the end, and how the story taught me that no matter how powerful a person is, if that power can't be used for a truly worthy cause, and then it might as well be as useless as grass to a dead horse.

I recommend this book to those who like to take their time with a book, and to those who staunchly believe that there is Magic in the world.

SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES – RAY BRADBURY

Ray Bradbury writes in poetry. No one could describe the joys and fears, the triumphs and defeats of childhood quite like he can.

This story presents two boys, the best of friends, faced with the ultimate temptation - knowledge. The story also gives us a father's look at the world of his son, his part in it, and how he finds the strength and courage to save his child - and ultimately himself - from the worst kind of evil. It's a story of heroism, redemption, true friendship, and hope that with a little help from our friends and family, no evil will be able to touch us. I'd joyfully recommend this book to anyone, but most especially to fathers.

Thanks for lending me your copy, Kevin.